What We Know About Government's Prism Program

6/7/2013 4:46PM

Spencer Ante joins the News Hub with the latest details on how the NSA surveillance programs worked, and what tech companies were handing over. Jerry Seib discusses whether the president got out ahead of the controversy.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

... the ... or ... some of ... like ... that we've been hearing all the last two years ... nobody's listening to the content ... of people's phone calls ... tonight President Obama defending the government's vast collection of emails and telephone records as an administration comes on the intense fire from media privacy groups and even followed Democrats will have back and so much mall ... right here right now on the New Saab good afternoon and welcome I'm Simon Constable ... joining us now is Wall Street Journal that the euro chief ... spend some times I was on the Senate spent some ... this is some ... overseas is huge news it's the continuing story ... what do we know about this for some programs so far ... sure ... so the prison program is the second top secret government surveillance program that is disclosed in the last twenty four hours ... in separate from ... the program that is affiliated with telecommunications companies ... this program is more geared towards Internet companies ... that is gnawing Internet companies that have been ... named as participating in this program according to the Washington post story ... on that was reported on yesterday ... he had it's basically aimed at ... gathering a wide range of digital information ... that is up ... go to the Surfers of the Zionist ... instructors are things like eighty miles credit card ... the old saw about videos photos file transfers videoconferencing a number of days so it's you who like basically and what about anything you might do online ... what do we know about the participation and ... willing or otherwise all these companies when so one of the things it's a little bit confusing about ... the response of the ... knowledge of the sport in which ... it was acknowledged to exist by the director of national intelligence James clapper ... does that the companies that were named in these aam presentations at ... the wash impose couple of them regarding ... some of them deny the existence of the program that they know where the existence of the program and they say that ... they do not give the government direct access to their servers however ... most of them did said ... that we are given a fourth-quarter ... by the government ... to customers' information they have to comply with ... Makenna and I found my Micra soft sigh that's right that's basically when when when the had ... doubled up ... most of those that doesn't break down the line from mildly TM announced its half empty light on electronic Frontier Foundation ... most companies have Wiesel lined with opaque line which this as one of the promises are made regarding privacy we still this wasn't much of the double the legal process ... and put such as court orders that sort of thing right so I'm ... Apple's place in the Senate of that that that none of this when I was there that are heard it said we do not provide any government needs to direct access for servers ... Tools than a dozen of the back door of the government that it is what I had a joke online source at least four up from school and ... yet not run until the question ... what what what is at stake if of these companies to meet some of that credibility with that uses Tuesday exists ... because we use by the Fama shrine ... that's right ... I think there's ... a lot at stake for these companies I think that ... all these companies have ... privacy policies all these companies said in a privacy policies that they'd only to protect ... the information of their users ... and so this ... sort of runs in the country to that statement all those many of the policies of these ... companies do have an acceptance is what we have a BFF attorney of members of ... that exception that carves out ... government in order to govern requests for information ... so this really I think underlines ... that that exception ... is actually a pretty big loophole ... that could lead to ... the potential of ... of invasion of people's privacy of millions of Americans' privacy ... was one company wanted to thank all the very fast run an of life both ... of us to become tummies we have met with the most points out ... hahas nothing about twenty nine I noticed is that most of all people going what are these public so really no reason to own the fire a special ... collection of night that ... some of its better required ... yes ... it is a notable exception I think that what it was not ... listed as one of the nine companies ... in this prison program ... but as you said most of what Twitter is is public however on the other hand ... Twitter does have ... a private message feature called ... Direct messages and so a lot of people actually do take advantage ... of the direct message feature on Twitter and so it's not like you would be completely ... um ... Baron of private personal information is actually a lot of personal Commission go into a ... direct messages ... it is interesting I wanted to spend a new cover corporate wealth ... around how much do you think people will be alarmed by this easy just that ... with its enough space now but secretly we all have in the back of our aunts that this could happen ... you know the existence of these programs has been known since at least two thousand and six when the USA today story disclose ... of that the regional telecom affiliated program ... but I think the disclosure of the secret order was the first concrete proof ... that ... specifically for you that this program was was real ... and that the ... city of acknowledgments by government officials that the problems are real ... is the first time the government is ever really talk about the public ... you're the president has ... just ... talking about this on the defense ... saying no we're not listen to Americans called I'm actually on on many on the onthe government of the Honda was nothing on the defense let's get out the will Street dolls Joe resigned from Washington ... and a Jerry I think the husband managed to get ahead of this and and and Monique well everybody says what do you think you can watch in Washington for a long time ... or why for for starters I think what you guys are just saying is right I mean the president it was pretty remarkable yet the president talking at length ... about programs that have never been discussed previously the foreign than any of those things he said last week would have been in and of themselves pretty shocking ... so ... we've broken new ground here ... I think what he did basically was saying was putting stuff in the mainstream which is to say on defending these programs ... on the fitting of alongside most members of Congress to voted for them the shield itself with Congress an awful lot against the civil libertarian critics who are out there ... in the courts incessantly all three branches of government ... are in on this deal now ... executive ahead of the story I don't know because the problem right now three pm is the context when the context is then ... because of the IRS controversy because they've been subpoenaed records of reporters ... because of a whole lot of things that happened recently ... there is the kind of a ... on guard about the Beattie ... government which is in your life ma mind set out there ... I don't know if you get entirely out for that or not but it probably shielded himself from some of the political damage by saying ... we've all linked arms here in Washington role in this together ... the porn your what what's the what's what this program is not intentionally used to target Americans that the focus on foreign communications ... the issue though is that when you ... pull in these foreign communications are often told in the communications of us and since that's import the state Senate it is a bar and poured one and I think people that saw him the boss for a while sorry we have to leave it that thank you very much spends on say ... corporate activity directed and thank you for much Jerry Sithe of The will